The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1887-06-03
Capt. stover's Snake Farm.
HE RAISES RATrLERs AND OTHER REP.
TILES FOR MARKET AND FINDS 1T
PAYS.

One of the Centre county stock of
Stovers has novel way of making a
living, near Gallon, III. He has q
rattlesnake farm and here is descrip-
tion of it by newspaper correspon-
dent:
Your correspondent last Sunday
visited the celebrated snake farm
"rattlesnake forty"-near this village,
owned and managed by Capt. Dan
Slower and wife, and assisted by Will
lam Dunn, agent at the Illinois Central
depot. 1t might be surmised that the
breeding and propagation of rattle
snakes and other reptiles was not only
dangerous but an unpleasant occupa-
ton. However, these poor but honest
people have learned that there is money
in snakes, and last year they cleared
almost enough from their sales TO pay
the expenses of the family Of four.
"Who buy rattlesnakes, and what
on earth do they want with them 7"
you ask. Why, for use in the manu-
faoture of the new cure for rheumatism.
A firm in Philadelphia uses the oil in
its remedy and pays a good price for
every rattlesnake delivered at the
laboratory. Mr.. Slower has contracted
with the firm to furnish them 250 of
that species during the present season
at 1925 each, none to measure less
than four feet in length, or to be less
than six years of age. The older the
snake the better and stronger the oil.
Sunday the sun shone out bright aud
warm, which brought out the snakes
in large numbers to bask in the warm
rays, and as Mr.. Stover said, would be
good day to take stroll over "rattle-
snake forty" Procuring a good stout
stick and donning heavy pair of
boots, your correspondent joined Stov-
er and Dunn in the hunt. To show us
how easy it is to kill a snake, he pick
ed up blue racer by the tail, that was
lying coiled up in the sunlight, in a
half comatose condition, giving it a
couple of whirls over his head in q
lightning manner he cracked it like a
whip, causing its head to part from its
body and spin through the air. Pro-
ceeding a little further, we came to
''the mounds little raised places on
the snake farm, where the snakes bur-
row in winter and breed in summer.
There are thirty-seven of these
mounds on the farm and on the south
side Of one of the largest of these,
where they could get the full benefit
of the sun, lay coiled up sound asleep
forty-three large rattlesnakes, seven
black snakes and numerous other
smaller reptiles, not one of which SEEM
ed to recognize our presence. Slower
and Dunn do not kill off the whole
crop yearly, but leave many for breed
ing purposes.
"Why," said the former, 'that mound
there contains probably a dozen nests
of eggs and each nest at least ten eggs.
have found nests that contained as
high as eighteen young rattlers, the
largest not over two inches in length.
Their eggs are about the size of those
Of partridge, but have soft shell.
The farm is tract Of virgin prairie,
and has never seen plough, and Dan
says in summer its native grass is very
high, rendering it an excellent place
for the reptiles to hide in."
Mrs. Stoyer also had in a box of
sawdust under a cook stove twenty
seven rattlesnake eggs, which, SHE
said, would begin to hatch in a few
days, after which event the children
would be kept busy catching flies to
feed the tiny pets.
Slower and Dunn have several pet
rattlers around the house, which are as
harmless as kittens, made so by their
poison sac having been removed from
the roofs Ct their m ,uths and their
fangs clipped with pinchers, all this be-
ing done while the snakes were under
the influence of chloroform. They
have no equal as mice exterminators,
and IN the summer keep the place free
from bugs, files and bad boys.